Bottom Line: The enhancements aren't quite ready for prime-time, but Baldur's Gate II remains one of the greatest RPGs of all time and an unsurpassed D&D experience. The improvements to the interface are fantastic, and if the new content gets the final wax-and-polish it deserves, it will be too.

Overhaul Games have smoothed out their process from their initial effort and have delivered a solid effort with Baldur’s Gate 2 Enhanced Edition. All of the elements that made the game great the first time around remain intact, with a few modern conveniences added. A must have for fans of the original and for newcomers who want to know how games used to be played.

If you have never played Baldurs Gate II, and wants to see what it is all about – Baldurs Gate II: Enhanced Edition is the version of the game to get. It works perfectly, while it has some nice additions that was not present in the original. If you are a returning fan of the game, it will not bring as many surprises, but still give a nice trip down memory lane. And if you get hooked to it, you will find that it sports many hundred hours of gameplay giving great value for your bucks. It is not perfect, but it is a nice piece of history.

Much as I'd like to dive in, the Escapist Mag. review just confirms my intention to wait for a couple patch releases.

Kordanor

November 17th, 2013 13:29

As far as I see it escapist also gave the game 3.5/5 Stars and not just 3.
But yeah, probably better to wait for a patch (and while you are at it: The next sale).

Couchpotato

November 17th, 2013 13:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kordanor
(Post 1061227049)

As far as I see it escapist also gave the game 3.5/5 Stars and not just 3.
But yeah, probably better to wait for a patch (and while you are at it: The next sale).

So does the .5 missing bother you that much? I fixed it so thanks for the correction, and now everyone can sleep peacefully. ;)

Kordanor

November 17th, 2013 13:38

Well, it's the same as changing a 6/10 to a 7/10 or 60% to 70% ;)
In such a small scale it indeed makes a big difference ^^

Saxon1974

November 17th, 2013 19:19

So same question I dad with the first one…any reason to get this instead of the free version with mods that I already own? Not seeing the value here.

Kordanor

November 17th, 2013 19:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saxon1974
(Post 1061227080)

So same question I dad with the first one…any reason to get this instead of the free version with mods that I already own? Not seeing the value here.

Haven't played it myself but from the escapist review:

Quote:

The interface has been tuned up as well. The menu now includes a quicksave button and a help option that brings up a simple breakdown of the game's controls, and a "quick-loot" button makes it much easier to collect the inconveniently huge piles of loot left in the wake of big battles. Character screens have been redesigned to be much more informative and accessible, while widescreen support means the game's sweeping vistas look better than ever.
Read more at http://www.escapistmagazine.com/arti…xhf1AYegdhj.99

and

Quote:

and the new material really doesn't add much freshness and will require more work to feel finished. Four new characters with unique side quests totaling in the neighborhood of a dozen hours of play is nothing to sneeze at, but the stock game already had 17 NPCs who could join your party and 60 hours of core gameplay that could climb to an estimated 300 hours in total.

Imho that sounds pretty good content wise.

rjshae

November 17th, 2013 21:21

The extra characters in BGEE were useful for adding some replay value.

GuybrushWilco

November 18th, 2013 01:50

hmm, this is a good reason to play this game again :) It's probably the second best Infinity RPG after Planescape: Torment. However, I know that BG1EE ran a big sluggishly on my machine.

Caddy

November 18th, 2013 05:01

Android version of BG1 would have been nice before this. Le Sigh :(

txa1265

November 18th, 2013 15:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caddy
(Post 1061227115)

Android version of BG1 would have been nice before this. Le Sigh :(

From what I read on the forums there is a different team working on the Android port(s) than on BG2EE … still, it is an obnoxiously long time - I mean, why even co-announce it when the actual release is so much later?

azarhal

November 18th, 2013 15:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by txa1265
(Post 1061227165)

From what I read on the forums there is a different team working on the Android port(s) than on BG2EE … still, it is an obnoxiously long time - I mean, why even co-announce it when the actual release is so much later?

They had unforeseen issues with the renderer for Androids (they rewrote it, it is apparently in the latest patch). Also, the legal issues with Atari probably stalled the development as well, as does the bazillion of Androids hardwares to QA.

txa1265

November 18th, 2013 15:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by azarhal
(Post 1061227168)

They had unforeseen issues with the renderer for Androids (they rewrote it, it is apparently in the latest patch). Also, the legal issues with Atari probably stalled the development as well, as does the bazillion of Androids hardwares to QA.

Oh I understand the issues, and I was actually talking more about BG2 - they announce it alongside the others while the year+ old BGEE still hasn't made the leap.

And anyone wondering WHY Android is NEVER first priority should take note of this - not only does iOS get more sales, the development costs are much lower due to crap like this … which are rampant with Android app developers I've talked to ..

azarhal

November 18th, 2013 16:58

I suspect the BGEE and BG2EE Androids versions are going to come out together. Well, I hope they do…

Caddy

November 20th, 2013 01:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by azarhal
(Post 1061227179)

I suspect the BGEE and BG2EE Androids versions are going to come out together. Well, I hope they do…

That's not good. People are going to wonder why i'm taking so long in the bathroom with my Nexus 7

Morrandir

November 21st, 2013 10:52

I don't know if I'm totally biased by nostalgia, but this game is simply great. Playing it for about 20 hours now and I'm totally sucked in. So many great NPCs, a world that feels alive, nice combat, great overall atmosphere.

There's some discussions in the official boards about a game breaking bug which causes corrupt save games due to a memory leak, that could make you lose hours of gameplay. I just keep on playing, despite the risk. Just because I don't mind playing some hours over again. I can't remember any game that made me think like that.

Carnifex

November 21st, 2013 17:13

I'm playing it as well, only about 10 hrs in, I'm really waiting for the inevitable patch to hit any day now. I've not run into any nasty game ending bug, and I'd like to keep it that way, lol. Playing the new EQ2 expansion for the most part now but I'll be full into this once again as soon as a patch hits.